Sean Payton gave the Broncos a much cleaner read on Jaylen Waddle’s injury Thursday, and the update points to a short absence rather than anything more serious.
Waddle was hurt during Wednesday’s practice, but the details were murky at the time. That’s been part of the challenge this time of year: injuries don’t have to be officially reported, and Payton isn’t exactly known for laying everything out on the table.
By Thursday, though, Waddle was back around the team. He wasn’t practicing, but he was walking around and appeared to be in good spirits while Denver went through a lighter session than the previous days and did not work in full pads.
Payton said Jaylen Waddle has “a strain” and expects him to be back in the next 4-5 days.
- Parker Gabriel (@ParkerJGabriel) August 6, 2026
That’s obviously better than the alternatives. Waddle has dealt with these smaller injuries before, even if they haven’t turned into major missed time over the course of his career. He has missed just seven games in five years and has averaged 15.6 games per season, which gives Denver a reasonable expectation that he’ll be available for most of the 2026 NFL season.
His size - 5-10 and 185 pounds - is part of why these kinds of bumps and strains can pop up now and then. Still, the Broncos have been one of the league’s least-injured teams for years, and that matters here. There’s no need to push him back before he’s ready.
If this were a playoff week and Denver were hosting a postseason game, maybe the conversation would look different. But that urgency just isn’t there right now.
The bigger priority is simple: get Waddle fully healthy and get him back to building his connection with Bo Nix.
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